Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1887-11-06
SIGHTS IN ANJ0U,
WHERE EARLY KINes OF ENGLAND
LIE BURIED.
Eenry II and Richard Of the Lion Heart
Through Green Fields and Past
Stately Ruins.
tSaumur Letterl

sights WHICH L nave seen Elucc ltIt tnc
city OF Nantes. ] got out Of Brittany
and into Anjou at place called Ancenis,
where there is very old church that
hhsarichly-caryed exterior pulpit whence
the village priest sometimes blesses the
cattle OF lis parishioners. The depart
ment in which | am now drifting, by
railway. by river, and now by turn
pike road that runs along the top of the
leyee Of the Loire, all of these routes,
parallel to each other, is Maine ct Loire.
It was out OF this province that the
Plantagencts OF England came, and hard
by this town is the old abbey church
where the first of that royal race lies on
his back in efigy and looks up at the
ceiling OF modern prison. OF course |
cannot so into the history Of Aniou, but
let me say there has been hard fighting
hercabout between Catholics and HUI
glenois during the religious wars, and
that it was but yonder where Cathelieu,
the carter, excited conscrpts TO re-
volt, which WAS ospOused by Brittany
gentlemen and became the terrible Van
ocean war in which General Cbar9tte,
grandunclo Of the noble zouavc who
married the dauslter OF President Polk,
took such active part. These wars Of
faith and fury came to an end in the
town OF Anglers and it was there where
only Yesterday | wandered in search Of
the old if not the beautiful. The Cathe
dral o. St. Maurice is wonderful build
ing. 1t has no flying buttresses there
is but one aisle; there are no pillars
supporting the vaulted ceiling; the col
umus arc built into the solid walls The
stained-glass windows are splendid, aud
the high altar of marble and its choir Of
scuipturcd wood are fine and graceful.
The front of the main door is orna-
mented with large statues representing
Biblical characters, also statuettes Of
angels end crowned old men. There is
gallery over these whereon stands an
imposing array OF knightly personages
in full srmor. There are three towers,
two of which have tall steeples that were
built in the early part Of the sixteenth
century. There are many other ancient
caifcts bullt for religious purposes, for
Anglers has been called town Of
churches, but none of them begin to
come up to the cathedral in architectural
beauty.
As for the fortress chateau in which
good King Rene lived so long and
reigncd with such excellence when
Dukes Of Anjou ranked with royalty,
that is a pile worth visiting at any time
The town lies on the decline of n lofty
hill that stoops to the edge OF the Loire,
and the ancient chateau crowns this
height We pass over a stout oak bridge
that spans a moat near Y hundred feet
broad and thirtv-odd deep, which was
scooped out OF the solid rock. The walls
are enormously thick. There is n heavy
portcullis at the entrance-gate, and no
icwcr than seventeen massive round
towers are placed here and there along
the ramparts of this once great fortress
Built in alternate layers of granite and
slatc-stOnc. 1t has a very sombre look
that adds much t. the feudal appearance
of the place Beyond the portcullis [
found a complacent guardian. who threw
OFF his cobbler's apron, called to his
wife 10 hold the porte at all hazards
against any sudden attack, put on his
coat and hat. and then guided me over
the ramparts into deep dungeons and
through thick towers until / had ox-
plored the castle tolerably thoroughly.
According 20 his version such a spot at
the wall was where young Arthur lcaped
to Toe dashed t. pieces on stones below
as hard as his uucle's heart, and lie had
never heard the other legend that / re-
lated to him, Of how it was the uncle's
hand which plunged poor Arthur in the
dark waters of the mOat, while the gray
towers rang with his drowning screams.
Whichever story may be the trucr one,
| was none the less inspired by awe rs /
gazed on those deafness walls that
looked rs il no mirth had ever visited
them, aud yet there were tue ruined
walls behind my back Of as magnificent
q banquetirg-hail as ever roystererS OF
old held high reycl IL.
OF this ine chamber, the very door Of
which gives against the prison entrance,
nothing now remains except part of the
facade and a grand old chimney Of
richlv-sculptured marble but, strange
70 say, the adjoining donjon tower is al
most wholly intact. He dragged me
down into the horrid place. bent my
body to get through The door / stopped
low to save ny head from the rugged
ceiling Of tho ante chamber; we
trod a dark hall doubly barred
with iron gates. descended some
risky steps, and entered cave scooped
ont Of the solid rock. Here so many
men have been chained at different times
and so long TO the stone IN standing
position that this natural wall has been
worn away by their constantlynbbing
shoulders tothe depth Of several inches !
[ was glad TO escape from such terrible
sights and recolIections. From the top
OF the ba;,lemented walls my shoemaker
guide shove ne outside the fortress the
house which nscd to be O riding
school. and where only the sons Of
noblemen or OF foreigners Of distinc-
ton were taught to 81, a horse cor
rectiy. Among the pupils arms still
preserved in the building, now occupied
as barracks, are those Of Pitt and the
Duke Of wellington, both OF whom
were scholars there. Then, in quite
another direction and far up the river,
he pointed out q dark round tower that
was erected by the first Plantagenet that
this would bias ever known, and when
that founder Of q race Of English kings
built 1t he little thought that the day
would come when ABSers's washcrwomen
would dry their linen on It's thick walls
or that neiehboriag peasant would IN
il house his horse and COW.
The valley OF the Lc:re in all the pro-
vince of ADjou, is richly cultivated.
Here were farms Of flowers, field after
field Of lax, now vineyards for miles
along the sloping hillside, fruit trees in-
Vulnerable, cattle and sheep browsing IN
the lower meadow lands. stub5le-fields
where wheat was long since harvested,
and plenty of wind mills working their
long arms lazily. BY and by, after quit
ting Anglers, the train on which [ was
travelling ran parallel TO the turnpike
road that courscd the top OF the famous
ievee OF the Loire. This great river OF
France, Ike the greater Mississippi, is for
miles and miles almost h.ankless on IT'S
right shore, and the widely wandering
stream las TO he held in restraint at
times OF heavy rains and floods even as
has that Of the Father Of Waters This
leyee is not nearly so long as that OF
the Mississippi botiom-lands, but it Is
ever so much better made than the one